Description:
Field of the Invention This invention relates to a lighting assembly, system and installation method lighting for hardscapes and steps.
Background Art:
Most patents in this field address mechanical housings that provide ease of use such as CA
2654119 or are of a novel construction to improve installation and maintenance such as CA
2661412. All patents addressing landscape or hardscape feature a specific housing that is either powered by AC mains power such as 120VAC to 240VAC, a safe low voltage as derived from the AC
mains power such as 12VDC or, in some cases, solar power.
The mechanical features of all patents in this field resemble a housing that is visible after the final installation. This detracts from the beauty and simplicity of hardscape walls and steps. A form of LED lighting whose housing that cannot be seen and is hidden in a hardscape wall or under steps is aesthetically pleasing and therefore highly desirable.
The connection of the power source to all patented outdoor LED lights is either not addressed or is made via various wires of different compositions and terminated with various connectors. The wires are often not as rugged as they should be and splicing or adding extra lengths of wire can be onerous for typical landscape installers.
This patent introduces two cost effective ways of providing outdoor LED
lighting that has not been addressed in any earlier patents. The first is the mechanical features of the lighting assembly, which converts the low voltage power into light, where the housing is hidden in the supporting structure. The second is the means of providing power to said lighting assembly via industry standard network cables.
2 Summary of Invention:
The lighting assembly of this invention comprises a circuit card consisting of two RJ45 connector jacks and voltage conversion circuit enclosed in a protective housing at one end, with a LED light at the other end.
The circuit card of the lighting assembly is thin enough to be conspicuous when installed but strong enough to withstand the weight of a hardscape cap material on top while being supported by a hardscape block underneath. With minor adjustments, the lighting assembly can be installed in steps as well. The lighting assembly provides current limited power via the voltage conversion circuit to the LED light. The resulting light is projected downward.
The two RJ45 connector jacks share common pin connections to provide power to the lighting assembly, which simultaneously facilitates a daisy-chain power connection to a plurality of lighting assemblies in the system. Power is provided by network cables that are terminated with the matching RJ45 connector plugs.
Brief Description of the Drawings Figure 1 is a perspective drawing of the lighting assembly of this invention.
Figure 2 is a drawing of a wiring system of this invention.
Figure 3a and figure 3b are perspective sectional drawings of the lighting assembly installed in a hardscape walls.
Figure 4 is a perspective drawing of the lighting assembly installed in steps.
Figure 5 is a prospective drawing of a network cable.
3 Detailed Description of the Invention The lighting assembly [1] of this invention comprises a circuit card consisting of two RJ45 connector jacks [2] and voltage conversion circuit enclosed in a protective housing [3]
at one end and a LED
light [4] at the other end. A RJ45 connector is defined herein as the IEC
60603-7 8P8C modular connector with eight conductors.
The RJ45 connector jacks [2] use pins 4 and/or 5 for positive DC power; pins 7 and/or 8 for return.
This pin numbering is per definition of Power over Ethernet (PoE) 802.3af mode B. Power can be supplied to either RJ45 connector jacks. If no further lighting assemblies are required, the second RJ45 connector [2] is left unconnected.
The lighting assembly [1] circuit card may be made of, for example, FR-4 material, is constructed thin enough that its presence does not cause a noticeable change in height of the cap [8] or step [9] installed above said lighting assembly. If a small adjustment in cap or step height is required, a spacer [11], made of surplus circuit board material, is provided. The conductors in the circuit card of the lighting assembly [1] are buried to avoid damage from the supporting elements. The lighting assembly [1] uses various means to displace water to ensure it maintains its function by adding a protective coating on the circuit board and water displacement material place in the connectors.
The LED light [4] may be, for example, a warm white LED.
Figure 2 illustrates the connection of power to the lighting assembly [1].
Providing power to the lighting assembly is done via a plurality of network cables [6]. The network cables [6] contain 8 solid conductors and may be, for example, category 5, 5e or 6 according to ANSI/TIA/EIA-568.
Figure 5 is a prospective illustration of a network cable [6]. These cables are terminated with RJ45 connector plugs [12] as each end. Both plugs share the same pin numbering and conductor mapping.
4 The method of injecting power into the network cable may be, for example, an indoor power injector [5] with a matching power source. The power source may be, for example, a wall mount adapter [13]. Power may be, for example, 12VDC.
Figures 3a and 3b provide prospective sectional illustrations of lighting assembly [1] installed in a hardscape wall [7] and under associated cap [8]. The length of the thin portion of said lighting assembly, between the RJ45 connectors [2] and LED [4] of [1] must be longer than the width of supporting block [7] as shown in figure 3a or, alternatively, the distance from the top grove to the edge of block [7], as shown in figure 3b.
Figure 4 provides a prospective illustration of lighting assembly [1]
installed in steps. In this instance, the thin portion of [1] must be longer than the support material as shown under each step [9].
It should be understood that the drawings shown herein are of a typical size and any modification of the shape of the circuit card or connector placement to suit the hardscape or steps by a person skilled in the art would be considered part of this invention. Mechanical features may be added to facilitate the securing of the lighting assembly to a particular support structure. LED colour, intensity and duty cycle many be changed to optimize use of available material and operation. The unused pins of the RJ45 may be used for signaling or added power. Any low voltage power supply (AC or DC) may be used. All such variations and modifications are intended to be within the scope of this invention.